engwall's Full Review: Sony SIXAXIS PS398040 controller for PlayStation 3
The Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker does a reasonable job of making homemade ice cream. It is easy to use, easy to clean, and the ice cream it makes is of a decent quality.
The unit comes in 4 pieces--a base with an electric motor, a bowl/freezer that sits on the base and is turned by the motor, a stirring mechanism that fits inside the bowl, and a clear lid with a large hole for adding ingredients on top fits over the bowl and holds the stirring mechanism in place.
The base is white, and has a relatively quiet motor and a large on/off switch in front. The electric cord stores conveniently in the bottom of the base. A quick wipe with a wet cloth after each use is enough to keep the base clean.
The bowl/freezer is white plastic on the outside, and stainless steel on the inside. Like most automatic ice-cream makers, you store the bowl in the freezer (I wrap it in a couple layers of plastic grocery bags to prevent freezer burn) and take it out when your ice cream mixture is ready. My only complaint with this product is that the bowl takes a long time to freeze--2 or more days in my freezer (the manual's estimates on freezing time for the bowl were quite low). If the bowl isn't frozen absolutely solid (shake the bowl to check), the ice cream will not freeze sufficiently in the maker and will become extra hard in the freezer. However, if the bowl is sufficiently frozen, it only takes 20 minutes for the ice cream to reach a creamy soft-serve consistency, and will reach a pleasant texture when frozen for a couple hours.
A quick wash in warm soapy water is all the bowl, stirrer, and lid need. Don't put them in the dishwasher, and make sure the bowl is very dry before freezing it. Don't store ice cream in the bowl itself (quart-size disposable plastic containers are a perfect size for most recipes).
The manual comes with several recipes for various types of frozen desserts. Some are very easy to make, and some require a bit of preparation. But like most things, ice cream seems to taste a little bit better when you make it yourself, and you don't have to worry about all the junk that you might find in the store brands. This is a great product to use with kids. It's fun to watch the ice cream mixture freeze inside the bowl as it turns, and the ice cream is ready to eat right away (so long as you don't mind soft-serve).
Overall, the Cuisinart Ice cream maker is a fine product, and if you let the bowl freeze solid, you will get very nice ice cream out of it. Just make sure that you plan ahead and start freezing the bowl a couple days in advance.
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